Perspective
by jasperose
Summary: a simple change in perspective could change much more than he ever hoped. Oneshot HG/DM


_**Hellooo...this is my second fic, first oneshot. I had a big ol' urge to write a Draco/Hermione, and this came out...please review, feedback would be soooo appreciated!  
jasperose.**_

**Disclaimer: honestly, if I owned H-pots, I would not make up stories about it and publish them on a website. enough said.**

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_Perspective_

_Her eyes searched his face questioningly, almost desperately. He never looked away, instead leaving his steel eyes locked on her amber ones._

"_Merlin, Granger, is it really that hard to believe?" he asked, half-smiling. It was a nice change from the permanent smirk always pasted on his pale, pointed face._

_She bit her lip, apparently deep in thought. He sighed, running a thin hand roughly through his blonde hair. He turned to leave, defeated, when she spoke._

"_Yes." He turned back around, his eyes narrowed in question._

"_Yes what, Granger?"_

"_It's incredibly hard to believe. For 7 years you have done nothing to contradict it. Of course it's hard to believe!" She threw her hands above her head as she said this, and took a step forward._

"_Why?" It was spoken so softly she had to strain to hear it. She looked up at his face, and was surprised to see something like hurt there._

"_Why? Come on, you can't be serious! It's blatantly obvious to everyone who's ever seen us converse that you hate me because of my lineage. How could you possibly change your mind so quickly?" she asked, her amber eyes blazing, daring him to reply. He doesn't disappoint._

"_It wasn't quickly. It's been coming for a while now..." he trailed off, blushing._

"_What do you mean?" she asked suspiciously. He gave a nervous laugh._

"_I mean, come on Granger! How could I possibly believe that after going to school with you for 7 bloody years? No matter how hard I studied, you would outsmart me, and it was effortless for you! It didn't matter that I was pureblood, all it came down to be was you were smarter than me. You, the filthy mud-blood, for Merlin's Sake! And after all those years I had spent having it drilled into my brain, everything I had been taught was suddenly irrelevant. It wasn't quick; it just took me a long bloody time to accept it."_

_He finished, and hesitantly met her gaze. Her endless eyes were a window, revealing all the hurt, confusion, denial, suspicion, and astonishment she was feeling._

"_I...what? So all these years of continual insults, teasing, even violence, was to keep up appearances?" Her confusion and skepticism was evident in her tone. Again, he laughed nervously, running his hand through his blonde hair._

"_So it would seem..." He couldn't meet her penetrating gaze. He knew his eyes would give away his feelings, the raging turmoil currently taking place inside of him._

"_Well, what a bloody waste of time!" she exclaimed, and his eyes snapped to her face. Never, in his 7 years of schooling, had he heard Granger swear. He licked his lips and repeated, "A waste of time? What do you mean, Granger?"_

_She scoffed. "What do I mean? I mean, what a waste of time. Why not just ignore me, or something? Surely it would've been easier than instigating fights, duels even?"_

_He ran his thin hand over the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable. Still the inner battle raged on. Would he honestly go against everything he was taught?_

"_Well, uh...yes. But I, uh...no, nevermind. Forget I ever mentioned this, yeah?" He got up to leave, and was startled when she grabbed his wrist to pull back onto the couch._

"_Malfoy. We have been fighting for 7 years. You can't possibly expect me to just let this go! You just completely changed my perception of you! If you aren't the conceited, pureblooded bastard I thought you were, then who are you?"_

_This question deeply unsettled him, for he knew he would have to give the answer he had been denying even himself for the past year. He swallowed hard and forced himself to meet her unwavering gaze. He cleared his throat, which suddenly felt extremely swollen, and tried to explain._

"_I started those fights with you because, at first, I just liked to see you angry. Furious, even. And I liked to get you worked into a state. I was bloody jealous, Her—Granger. And the fact that you were proving everything I was taught wrong without even realizing didn't make it any better. When I first called you a mud-blood back in Second Year, the look of absolute hatred that passed over your face strangely didn't scare me, though. It encouraged me, because I knew I was getting to you. From then, it kinda turned into a sort of power-struggle. The way your eyes would blaze every time we fought; it was captivating. And the way your lips would tighten into a straight line was encouraging. After a while, you kind of turned into a constant in my life. Something I could always count on, because your reactions were always the same. They were comforting. And I know that sounds disturbing, but it's true," he stopped abruptly, seemingly catching himself. He could feel a blush warming his pale cheeks and determinedly avoided her incisive gaze. He cleared his through, awkward, and rubbed the back of his neck again._

"_Carry on," she said, softly. He looked up, and she smiled almost reassuringly. He grinned feebly back and coughed slightly._

"_After that whole Sixth Year thing, with the attempted murder on Dumbledore, that really freaked me out. And true to his word, Voldemort killed my father. My mother, however, fled before he could get the chance to murder her. I have no idea where she is right now..." To his horror, a lump had formed in his throat, obstructing his speech. He cleared it roughly and looked down, embarrassed. A soft hand rested upon his own thin one. He shook his head and nervously looked up, to be met with Hermione's sympathetic gaze. Strangely, this did not anger him. He straightened up and continued._

"_Well, uh, that kind of put it all into place. And since my father wasn't around to tell me it was wrong, I starting thinking in a different mind set. I mean, the only purebloods I've ever associated with are, for lack of a better word, completely mental. All that 'control the muggles' tosh is a little wearing. Anyways, I came back to Hogwarts with a whole new perspective, and that scared me, to say the least. But, being the loyal Slytherin I was, I couldn't very well just start being civil to you! Oh no. So I carried on with the insults and fights. And uh...this is where it gets a little more embarrassing..." He stopped and swallowed heavily. Hermione's hand still rested on top of his. He took this as a good sign, and again continued._

"_I uh, started to notice that uh...you were a girl. And not just an infuriating mud-blood girl, but...a...girl." By now a steady blush had risen into his normally pale cheeks. He still couldn't meet her disbelieving gaze as he persisted, "so basically, I started these fights, so I could actually get you to talk to me, to show a fierce emotion...and now that I have sufficiently embarrassed myself, I'm going to leave. Forever."_

_Once more, he got up to leave. He made his way to the staircase leading up to his bedroom. When his foot hit the first step, he heard her rise from her spot on the couch. He quickened his pace, mentally berating himself for even starting the bloody conversation. Soon, he was outside his heavy oak door. He grasped the bronze handle and pulled, before trudging in and shutting the door quietly behind him. He then proceeded to collapse heavily onto his four poster, wishing for sleep to claim him so he could forget about the whole night._

_Hermione stood still in the middle of the common room, her eyes still staring disbelievingly at his retreating back. Did he just say...that? Did Malfoy, king of the pureblooded snobs, just admit he had feelings for Hermione the mud-blood? What?!_

_Being the intellect she was, leaving a question unanswered did not go well with her. She mustered up all her supposed Gryffindor courage and headed up the blue-carpeted stairs._

_A soft knock broke into the Head Boy's thoughts, awaking him from his reverie. He sighed, knowing full-well who was at the other side of that door. He got to his feet, his bare toes sinking into the thick carpet. Once he reached the door, he hesitated. Did he really want to deal with this?_

"_Hurry up, Mal—Draco," came a soft voice from the other side. He started. Draco? Since when had he been Draco? This, more than anything, gave him the courage to open that door and face his insecurities._

"_Can I come in?" she asked, her small hands clasped together tightly in front of her._

"_Yes, um, yes. C-come in," he managed to get out._

_Did he just stutter? Hermione wondered. I don't think I've ever heard him stutter before..._

_Hermione crossed the threshold and let her eyes take in the sight of this most unfamiliar room. Silver and green covered every available surface, and his handsome four-poster stood in the right corner of the room. His wardrobe was in the far corner, one of his ties thrown carelessly on the ground in front of it. Beside the wardrobe was a door that Hermione knew lead to the adjoining bathroom that the two Heads shared. A large bay window was directly across the room from this door, giving him a wonderful view of the lake. Basically, exactly like her room._

_She turned to face the owner of this room, and was surprised to see him watching her closely, a look of apprehension upon his face. She stepped towards him and again searched his eyes for something more. He looked away under her scrutiny, and instead walked toward his four-poster._

"_Mal—Draco? Could I ask you something?" she questioned, unsure of his reaction._

"_Sure," he muttered. He was clearly uncomfortable. Could he have been telling the truth?_

"_What you said downstairs...did you mean what I think you meant?" Hermione asked, curious._

_He chuckled softly and finally turned towards her, his steel eyes meeting her amber. "That depends. What did you think I meant?" he responded. Hermione rolled her eyes. _

"_You know...that you...bugger it. Draco, do you fancy me?" she asked, looking at him straight on. He blushed yet again, but did not lower his gaze. He took a step forward, so they were but a foot apart. His chest moved slowly up and down as he hesitated, breathing deeply._

"_Yes."_

_Hermione's eyes widened considerably. What?!_

_Draco chuckled yet again at her reaction. "Yes, Granger. Hermione. I do fancy you. A whole bloody lot. And I know I have a horrible way of showing it. I mean, insulting you every chance I get? How childish," he scolded himself. Hermione gave a weak laugh. _

"_I have a question for you now, Hermione." She nodded, signaling him to continue. "Do you fancy me?" She blushed. Draco grinned. A good sign!_

"_I—well—what? No, no, this is about you!" she spluttered. Draco's grin widened. He took another step forward, gaining confidence. When he next spoke, she could feel his breath tickle her cheek, and she looked up to meet his steel gaze. It's not steel, she thought; more of a stormy sky..._

_And it was then that she realized just how close he was. If she were to reach up, their lips would be touching..._

_Draco seemed to be thinking along the same lines, for he slowly leaned down, his blonde fringe in his stormy eyes. As he got closer, Hermione was able to see into his eyes, and for the first time, Hermione saw something other than superiority and arrogance in those captivating eyes. She saw loneliness, warmth, confusion, but most of all, she saw her face, reflected in his dark pupils. Her breath quickened as she slowly rose her face up to meet his. He hesitated, inches from her lips, and looked deep into her eyes. Hermione returned his intense gaze with as much emotion as his were giving. She resolutely closed the gap between the two, her lips on his saying all the things she couldn't. He responded, his lips molding with hers, moving in time. She gasped sharply, and Draco understood why. Never in his life had he felt such intensity from a single kiss. He gently placed his thin hands on her slight frame; one on the back of her neck, the other on her waist. She leaned into him, her tongue tracing the curve of his lower lip. He moaned into her mouth and opened his, relishing in the feeling her tongue aroused deep within him. He slipped his tongue into her mouth, exploring her, tasting her. He removed his mouth from hers, eager to taste more of her. He moved his lips to her neck, nipping and sucking softly as she moaned in pleasure. Her small hands, one in his hair, the other on his chest, clenched momentarily as he found a particularly sensitive spot on her neck. He grinned into her soft skin, and his grin widened as she brought his mouth back to hers._

_He moaned again as she trailed down his jaw line, her lips grazing his skin. He was kissing Hermione! He sighed as she pulled back, and opened his eyes. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes bright. She was beautiful._

_He grinned at her, and she smiled. _

"_Hermione, I—" Her soft lips silenced him as once again he melted into oblivion. All that remained was her, and her lips, and the feel of her pressed against him so intimately..._

_Draco broke the kiss and rested his forehead against Hermione's. His heart was racing, his hands shaking. What did this girl do to him?_

_Draco reached up his left hand and rested his palm against her flushed cheek, caressing. Hermione leaned into it, shutting her eyes._

"_Draco..." she began. Draco tilted her head up and looked into her amber eyes._

"_Yes?" he murmured softly, his breath tickling her eyelids._

"_I hope that answered your question..." Draco's laughter filled the room, echoing off the walls._

_What did this girl do to him?_

**_review!!_**


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